Tackle Update: Navionics

With the MN Sport Show rolling in for their annual visit, I got to man the Navionics booth for the past three days and educate all the fisherman on the advantages of using these lake map cards to hunt trophy fish on their favorite bodies of water. Sure, most people understand the importance of why it's necessary to use some sort of mapping chip for their sonar and GPS units, I want them to understand why Navionics is leading the way.


For those that don't know, Navionics Hot Maps are small media cards that provide in depth lake mapping for your favorite GPS units. They have thousands of lakes per region within six regions, North, East, South, West, Canada and the Great Lakes (Fish N' Chips). These maps are loaded with detail providing structures, reefs, drop-offs, vegetation in contour lines up to 1 foot, not to mention navigational aids like hazards, lock and dams, channel markers, boat ramps and wing dams.

The obvious reason that Navionics is the first choice for any serious angler is that each chip is arranged by region, not just by state. They have by far the biggest assortment of lakes on each chip, for instance the North chip is made up of all of MN, WI, MI, ND, SD, IA and even a small part of Canada, including all the major border lakes like Rainy and Lake of the Woods. This is by far your biggest bang for your buck.

Another reason I choose Navionics is because how simple it is to navigate a body of water without any confusion. Each map shows depth in both numbers and colors, so when traveling at high speeds I can easily tell where I need to be without running risk of damaging my prop or lower unit. This is a must for any tournament fisherman.


Another "must have" from Navionics is their new iPhone application. This app, which is marked at under ten dollars, offers everything that the chip does and turns your iPhone into a hand held GPS, capable of navigating any body of water. It's a no brainer at under ten bucks! Click here to download to your iPhone.

All for now, with the extended forecast in the 60's and 70's and the ice finally giving way on our Minnesota lakes I can finally say, see you on the water!!

Pimp my Ride

At last, Spring is officially here! Up here in the Northern US it doesn't exactly feel like Spring but I'm not complaining either. In fact, it could be much worse. We haven't seen snow fall at all in March and the extended forecast looks as if we won't see any in the future either, at least not till next winter. The average high this month has been in the high 40's with some high's floating near the mid 60's. The negative though is that the temp is well warm enough to be fishing but the lakes and rivers are still unfishable because the ice hasn't given way yet. Though we are days away in some areas and I'm thinking by Easter most all the lakes in southern Minnesota and around the Twin Cities will be good to go.


Since I haven't been able to wet a line since returning home from Falcon, I've been curing my fever by getting my ride ready for a full season of hardcore tournament fishing. Last weekend I spent down at my buddy Brent Haimes place, rigging my new Humminbird 998 as well as remounting my three Lowrance units. I'm very excited about my new setup, It'll change the way I practice in that I will be way more efficient with my time. Time is money and this is an advantage that I no longer could afford to ignore.

Another added feature that we installed was a LGC-4000 GPS Receiver Antenna to replace the older LGC-3000 puck. The advantage of the 4000 is that it communicates with it's satellites 5 times per second as opposed to 1 time per second with the 3000, this will definitely give my Lowrance Units a extra boost and assist in navigating backwater as well as zeroing in on my waypoints, plus it gives me a better overall GPS connection.

I also took care of some much needed maintenance by going over all my electronic connections and cleaning them as well as greasing them with dialectic grease, assuring a good connection. I put on a brand new shiny prop, with the intention of keeping it that way. Mind you that I use the word "intention", there's no guarantee with me, ask my beautiful wife Bri, she'll easily attest to that.

After all that I pulled the Ranger out and gave her a good bath as well as put in an order for a new seat skin. The boat looks great, all winter it was over at Bottom's Up Repair, getting any and every blemish in the fiberglass repaired and anyone who knows will easily back me when I say there's no one better at fiberglass work than Jim at Bottom's Up. I mean that, he matched the glitter perfectly.


Now that I got everything taken care of with my money maker, it's time to focus on the fishing. I leave in a few weeks for a Bassmaster Weekend Series tournament down on Grand Lake, in northeastern Oklahoma. I do have some experience on this body of water and am really looking forward to catching some good fish and hopefully cashing a much needed paycheck right away to start the season. Then once back home, I'll be spending all my free time down on pools 4 and 5 of the Mississippi preparing for the St. Jude Bass Classic. I'm glad I'll be able to fish this event again this year, it's an awesome fishery against an awesome class of fisherman and best yet it's for a even better cause. If you have any desire at all to donate money to a fantastic cause, please contact me either by email, josh@joshdouglasfishing.com or on my cell at 952-412-8088.

I'll also be working the Navionics booth at the annual Northwest Sport Show this weekend. I'll be working mostly nights, so if you have nothing going on, come down and enjoy the show and be sure to drop by the Navionics booth and say hi!

Summer is around the corner, be sure to follow the ice out report for your favorite body of water by following this link.

Happy Spring!

Peter Perovich for Minnesota Senate

If you know me well, you probably know my take on politics. For those that don't, let me give you the very quick run down. I don't side completely with any one party, in fact, I think it's a bit irrational to 100% completely agree with any one side. If you can't find at least one thing on each side to agree with than I think people are being a bit biased. This is one reason I never talk politics on my site, however, now I find myself making the exception. Please understand that I am not supporting any one party but instead supporting a candidate that I know can represent Minnesota well and be the voice we need in that position.

Peter Perovich, who I've come to know through the Minnesota B.A.S.S. Federation, where he does an excellent job of heading the board of directors as president. Peter's values and beliefs when it comes to the environment are what first caught my attention. When I learned that Peter was running for a seat in the Minnesota Senate, I couldn't have been more thrilled. We as bass fisherman and outdoor enthusiasts need someone who can hear our concerns and actually care to do something about them. That's when I started looking deeper into his campaign and found that some of my values, especially when it comes to the sport of fishing, aligned on the same side. Below I've pasted a article from his campaign.

Peter Perovich, a life-long resident of Anoka County, has announced his candidacy for the Minnesota State Senate, District 48. Perovich, who is seeking DFL endorsement, is a first-time political candidate who is running to give local communities a more proactive voice in state government.

“I want to work on the quality-of-life issues that I believe will strengthen our communities today and in the years to come, and that currently are receiving less-than-ideal attention and support in the State Legislature,” Perovich said.

He cited concerns with current funding and support for education, healthcare, and environmental protection as key to his decision to seek DFL endorsement, calling it “the party that most closely aligns with my positions.”

“As a citizen and as a father, I believe these are the areas government can impact for the betterment of society and also where it has a responsibility to be involved in order to protect the interests of those without a voice or monetary resources to protect themselves,” Perovich explained. He said his orientation on social issues was directly impacted by growing up in the small town-turned suburb of Anoka, which he credited with having had a strong sense of community and shared purpose.

In the years that followed, Perovich said his career as a realtor and mortgage banker gave broader insight into the challenges many families face every day as they work to secure their futures. “As a state senator, I would be committed to representing the interests of every resident in District 48 and to uniting diverse interests for the greater good,” he added.

Perovich became interested in elected office while working in support of Minnesota fishing and environmental protection. He serves on the Department of Natural Resources’ Citizens Budget Oversight Committee (BOC), Fisheries Division—a position appointed by the DNR Commissioner

In addition, he serves on the DNR’s Bass Advisory Committee and Tournament Organizers Advisory Board and, in 2009, was the lead speaker for the Annual DNR Stakeholders Roundtable.

Perovich also holds leadership positions in statewide fishing organizations. He is treasurer of the executive board of Anglers for Habitat. And, after serving as the state director and second vice president of the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Bass Federation, was elected this past December as president of the organization, which represents more than 500 angler’s state wide.

“I look forward to extending my civic activities to public office and anticipate a grassroots campaign that will elevate the interests of citizens throughout our local communities,” Perovich said, adding that he wants to give voice to the issues area citizens feel demand more attention in the public arena.

Perovich resides in Ramsey with his wife, Sally, and their four school-age children.


For more information, contact: Peter Perovich, 763-421-3689 or email him at perovichforsenate@yahoo.com